The spot is on Riverside Drive between 105th and 106th Streets. There, in a residential neighborhood, in front of the New York Buddhist Church, is a tall statue of a Japanese Buddhist monk, Shinran Shonin, who lived in the 12th and 13th centuries. In peasant hat and sandals, holding a wooden staff, the saint peers down on the sidewalk.
The statue survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, standing a little more than a mile from ground zero. It was brought to New York in 1955. The plaque calls the statue “a testimonial to the atomic bomb devastation and a symbol of lasting hope for world peace.”
The statue stands a few blocks from Columbia University, where much of the bomb program began.
“I wonder how many New Yorkers know about it,” Dr. Norris said of the statue, “and know the history.”
Youtube user "bobertbach" posted this 1989 film of the man online and wrote:"This man ran a bike repair shop in the abandon NW corner of C & 7th in the late 80's. When he needed to straighten out a bike frame he would wait for a bus to stop across the street & stick it under its' tire. I can remember him arguing with a bus driver. He was eventually evicted by developers. It is currently Zum Schneider."
There's also a dog in the film, sleeping soundly on the hood of a car. Bobertbach writes, "The dog, 'Hank' was owned by actor Mark Boone Jr. who was a bartender at Vazaks in the mid to late 80's. It was stranger than paradise."
